


Acceptance: An Unconventional Love Story

by Zygarde22



Series: Acceptance: Main and Side Stories [1]
Category: RWBY
Genre: Budding Love, Eventual Smut, First Time, Multi, Romance, Wet Dream
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-16
Updated: 2015-09-08
Packaged: 2018-04-14 23:29:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 13,927
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4584291
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zygarde22/pseuds/Zygarde22
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After waking from an accident caused by a dust explosion Cardin finds that the person that saved him was the one he'd tormented the most during his school year, now he has to deal with the growing feelings he has for the faunus girl. But one question remains will she accept him. (A Cardin X Velvet story, rated for a few things but only has one sex-scene mentions other couples)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A Beginning

Cardin groaned–he was in pain, lots and lots of pain. His eyes slowly shifted open and he looked around to see where the hell he was. White walls, no windows, and a long ceiling. Sticking out of his arm were several tubes and wires, all connected to various medical monitors and equipment. He was in Beacon Academy's infirmary from the looks of it, but why? Cardin, for the life of him, couldn’t figure out why. Then it hit him: a dust explosion occurred in class and he was caught in the blast.

He moaned fiercely as he attempted to right himself, each movement bringing new waves of burning pain to his muscles, which felt as if jagged needles were piercing his flesh. Noticing his movement, the nurse that worked at the infirmary approached him.

“Ah, Mister Winchester, I see you’re finally awake,” the nurse said, a smile plastered on his face. “Though, I recommend you not to move for a while.” The nurse gently pushed Cardin back down on the bed.

“Um, if it’s no trouble, would you mind telling me why I’m here?” Cardin asked. He already knew most of what happened, but he’d like more details as to what had transpired while he was unconscious. The nurse gave him another patient smile and began to speak.

“Well, Mister Winchester, you were caught in a serious dust explosion. Luckily for you, you weren’t seriously injured, but I believe you owe that to the person who pushed you out of the way when it occurred,” the nurse briefed him. The last part caught Cardin’s attention—who had pushed him out of the way?

“And who would that have been?” Cardin’s curiosity prompted him to ask. The nurse then pointed to the other occupant of the room—she had brown hair and long rabbit ears; it was Velvet. One question rang in his head: why? Why would she, of all people, save him?

Cardin then decided to ask another question, this one pertaining to Velvet.

“How long will she be like that?” he asked, his words indicating to her comatose state. The nurse though a moment before speaking.

“We’re not entirely sure. The doctor said she could be like that a few weeks, or perhaps a few months. We’re not completely sure,” the nurse admitted, regret lacing his tone and his smile no longer present.

“Oh, okay,” Cardin replied, a little dejected at the news for Velvet. “So, how long was I out then?”

Only two days. I’m actually surprised you’re up now. The doctor projected you to be out for a few more days to a week,” the nurse answered, his tone returning to chipper. “Well, I will go fetch the paperwork for your release.” The nurse then left the room, leaving Cardin and Velvet alone. Observing her still form gave him a small ache; she had risked her life to save him, someone who had, for the last year, tormented her to no end. Someone who made her life a living hell.

After getting signed out, Cardin tried his best to forget what had happened but no matter how much he tried, he could not remove the image of a comatose Velvet from his mind: her shallow breaths, as she struggled to stay alive with each one. She looked so frail, much frailer than any person he’d ever seen.

Deciding that he needed to go see her one day after one of his classes led into a free period, he went to the infirmary. When he reached Velvet’s room, he was greeted by a face that, while not unexpected, he found unpleasant to see nonetheless. It was Coco Adel, team CFVY’s leader, and the person who hated Cardin with a burning passion only seen on B-class star. She gave him the death glare to end all death glares through her sunglasses.

“What are you doing here?” she sneered venomously. Cardin, in turn, raised his hands in truce as he spoke in his defense.

“I’m just here to visit and give thanks to the person who saved my life, you know,” he said, allowing as much innocence into his tone as he could manage. Coco lowered her sunglasses to look at him more intensely; this was beginning to make Cardin sweat nervously, but she then got up from the chair on the side of Velvet’s bed and made her way out of the room. However, before she left, she whispered into Cardin’s ear.

“If I find out you did anything to her, they will never find your body,” she hissed, and Cardin nearly bolted from the room right then and there but used all his willpower to keep his body still; he was not going to cower in fear to the second-year student. Cardin sat down next to Velvet after Coco left, looking at her still form. She was still taking those shallow breaths, and her body still looked so frail—she was so small compared to him, and so fragile, he thought. He shook those thoughts from his head as he began to speak to the unconscious girl.

“I’m glad you tried to save me,” he began slowly as he tried to find the right words to say. He knew she couldn’t hear him, but this felt . . . right. “I know you didn’t have to, gods know no one would blame you considering all the crap I put you through.” He didn’t speak another word, and he remained in the infirmary by her side for the remaining of his free period, leaving only when the bell alerted him that he had to return to class.

Over the next couple of weeks, Cardin continued to visit Velvet. Sometimes during these visits he would run into one of her teammates, each of them giving him varying degrees of murder: from the one he had received from Coco, to _touch her and I will end you_ , and all in between. He would tell Velvet how his day went or leave the study work she would most likely need to catch up in the classes they shared.

Then, one day, while he was in the middle of talking to her, her eyes began to flutter open. Looking all around her, Velvet had no idea where she was; all she could see was a high ceiling and hear a voice that sounded familiar. Where was she? Who was this?

She sat up, ignoring the pain, and tried to ascertain where she was when she saw him: Cardin. She almost instinctively recoiled when he tried to touch her.

“Holy crap, you’re awake!” Cardin cried, falling out of his chair at the sight of a newly conscious, but a bit out of it, Velvet. This commotion got the attention of the nurse that attended the room, and he walked in to see Velvet sitting up, her eyes open, and Cardin on the floor.

“Oh! Miss Scarlatina, you’re awake! That’s good!” the nurse exclaimed excitedly as he walked over to Velvet to check on her.

“Right, right, I’m awake,” Velvet muttered as she got a better look at her surroundings. She could see white walls and no windows, the telltale marks of the Beacon infirmary. Why was she in the Beacon infirmary?

“I imagine you’re wondering why you’re in the infirmary?” the nurse asked Velvet, who nodded her head in agreement. “Well, Miss Scarlatina, you were caught in a dust explosion, along with mister Winchester here.” Velvet looked over to Cardin, who had a sheepish smile on his face.

“I see. How long was I out?” she asked the nurse. His smile fell slightly as he explained.

“Well, ma’am, you’ve been in a comatose state for approximately three weeks and four days.” Velvet gasped at the news; she’d been out that long, from a dust explosion? How?

Well, I’m going to go get the paperwork done for your release from the infirmary. I will be back momentarily.” With that said, the nurse exited the room, leaving Velvet and Cardin alone, if only for a brief time.

“Why are you here?” Velvet asked irritably, but quietly.

“You saved me, so I wanted to come as say, you know, thanks,” Cardin managed, avoiding meeting the Faunus girl’s eyes.

“Oh, well, you’re . . . welcome, I guess,” she replied, her tone barely above a whisper. The nurse returned and with him, a wheelchair. Velvet had a look of distress on her face—was she that injured? Noticing this, the nurse quickly spoke up to reassure her.

“No worries, Miss Scarlatina! This wheelchair will only be temporary. You’ve been off your legs for three weeks, and no doubt they need some time to regain their strength. So until then, you will be using this wheelchair,” the nurse finished, his usual warm smile on his face. Helping the young Faunus girl into the wheelchair, the nurse left with Velvet, leaving Cardin alone.

Returning to Team CRDL’s dorm, his team had known of his incursions to the infirmary to see Velvet but wisely chose not to comment on them. Except Russel, who asked Cardin how this day’s visit went.

“So, how’d it go? She wake up yet?” Russel asked as he was replacing some of the dust crystals in the hilt of his dagger. Cardin, for his part, was lying on his bed and looking up at the ceiling.

“She’s awake but stuck in a wheelchair for a while,” he said solemnly. Russel gave Cardin a strange look, but decided not to press any further. Cardin closed his eyes, but all he could see was the mental image of Velvet in the wheelchair.

“Hey, Cardin, we’re heading out to get some food. You wanna come with?” Dove asked. Cardin simply shook his head, trying his best to close his eyes and resist the image of Velvet. When he heard the door leading out of the room click shut, he let out a frustrated groan. Why was she on his mind? He could not, no matter how hard he tried, shake the image of this . . . freak from his head.

He suddenly felt a pang of regret for calling her a freak. What was happening to him? He needed to clear his mind. Grabbing a pair of clothes, he went to go take a shower; that always helped him get his mind clear when he was having trouble.

As the warm water cascaded off his body, his mind began to clear a little more. He could finally shake this thought—this was just a phase, he knew it.

Stepping out of the shower, Cardin dried himself off and put on the fresh pair of clothes. He stepped out of the washroom but immediately was greeted with the sight of the one person he did not need to see at this moment.

Velvet was being pushed by her teammate, Fox, to their dorm room. Tearing his gaze from her, he rushed as fast as he could to Team CRDL’s room. Shutting the door, he slid down the frame and let out a long growl, banging his head against the frame’s hard wooden surface. He was so close to forgetting that image, so close, and then he had to see her. Why?!

He needed this answered as fast as possible. He couldn’t ask his team, lest he have to deal with the millions upon millions of questions that he knew they’d levy his way. That only left a few people he might be able to tell. He could potentially ask, but none of them were very palatable options. Narrowing down his options, he conclude a single good one; someone whom he could ask but who wouldn’t pester too far in return as to why he was asking.

It was time to pay that Jauney boy a visit, and have a little man to man with him. Hopefully, this would solve all of his problems.

 


	2. A Look for Love

Jaune yawned as he walked to the dorm room of team JNPR; it was probably twelve in the morning and Pyrrha and he had been training for a few hours after everyone went to sleep. Pyrrha had went ahead of him to make sure that the coast was clear and they wouldn't be caught by any of the night monitors. Walking down the hallway, Jaune failed to notice a dark figure in a corner. Letting out a loud yelp of surprise he was dragged into the corner by a pair of strong hands. Jaune kicked and punched at the unknown person in fear, his eyes closed tightly.

"Dude, stop that, I need to talk to you," his assailant whispered sharply. This made Jaune stop for a moment and get a good look at who it was that had grabbed him.

"Cardin? What do you want?" Jaune asked, a bit confused by the sudden intrusion. Cardin rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment.

"Well, you see, I need help with . . . um . . . jeez," Cardin fumbled, trying to figure how to word his question.

"Um, are you okay?" Jaune asked. Cardin turned his attention back to Jaune.

"Yeah. Anyway, I need your help with a . . . um, girl." Cardin admitted. Jaune gave Cardin a strange look before bursting into a fit of laughter. Cardin covered his mouth to prevent anyone from hearing the outburst.

"Shut up! Are you trying to get us caught?" Cardin hissed franticly, peaking his head around the corner to see if anyone had heard the outburst. Seeing that no one had come to see what the noise was he removed his hand from Jaune's mouth.

"Sorry, sorry, it's just you need my help?" Jaune said, still not believing what he had heard.

"Yes," Cardin said bluntly.

"My help. The dork who took half a year to figure out his girlfriend's feelings. You need my help?"

"Yes, gods, do I have to write it out in bold print, post it on Beacon Net, and have it liked by two thousands students?" Cardin said dryly, his patience running extremely thin, "Plus, you were the only person who I could talk to that wouldn't blab about it." Jaune placed his index finger to his chin and thought long on what Cardin had said. After a moment, he shrugged his shoulders.

"Okay, I'll help you," Jaune said. Just as Cardin was leaving, a question popped into Juane's head. "Um, by the way, who's the girl you need help with?" Jaune asked curiously. Making Cardin stop in his tracks. He should have, in hindsight, prepared for this question. Damn you, hindsight.

"Does it matter?" Cardin responded. Jaune shrugged his shoulders.

"Not really I just—" He was cut off by Cardin abruptly leaving the area.

"Good, I'll see you tomorrow. Meet me in the cafeteria during our lunch hour," Cardin called back as he walked away, leaving a perplexed Jaune to mull over the situation.

"Did I just agree to help Cardin Winchester with his girl problems?" he asked himself aloud. As he made the rest of the trip to team JNPR's dorm, he debated telling Pyrrha but decided not to. He instead went to sleep and awaited the eventual train wreck that would result from helping Cardin woo whatever girl he was pining for.

The next day, Jaune woke up normally: he brushed his teeth, combed his hair, took a shower, said hey to his teammates, said hey to team RWBY, went to breakfast, and finally started his class. He knew full well that lunchtime was going to be a disaster to rival the food fight that occurred the day before second semester started—he had to help Cardin Winchester, arguably the worst person he knew, woo a girl. How, he had no idea. All he knew is it was doomed to failure. The lunch bell rang, signifying that Jaune had to face the music and talk to Cardin about this . . . girl, whomever she was.

"I'm glad to see you still came, I was half expecting you to bail at the last minute," Cardin admitted as Jaune took a seat next to him. The two of them had decided to take a lunch table far from everyone else in the cafeteria including, teams CRDL and JNPR.

"I almost did, but I am nothing if not a man of my word. So, who's the girl that you need help with?" Jaune asked as he took a bite of his food. Cardin's face turned a small shade of red as he tried to find a way to offer the answer. He quickly muttered Velvet's name under his breath, hoping Jaune would accept that as an answer.

"What was that? I didn't quite catch it," Jaune replied, confused. Cardin should have seen this coming. He swallowed his pride and spoke loud enough for Jaune to hear but was conscious to keep it just quiet enough in case any students nearby were bothering to listen in.

"Velvet," Cardin swallowed, voicing the name as calmly as he could but wincing when his voice cracked regardless. Jaune, in return, raised an eyebrow, trying to figure out if he had heard Cardin correctly.

"You said Velvet . . . right?" Jaune confirmed, trying to see if his ears were playing tricks on him.

"Yes, okay?" Cardin huffed, averting his gze. Jaune frowned at Cardin then looked to his side, where in the far off part of the cafeteria he could see the still-wheelchair bound Faunus girl eating and talking to her team. He then he then returned his attention to Cardin, then for added measure took another glance at Velvet.

"Did you snort some of Russel's dust this morning or something?" Jaune droned, still in slight disbelief at what he heard. Cardin gave Jaune a dirty look at that remark.

"No, I did not snort dust this morning," Cardin growled. Jaune still gave Cardin a fixed stare and spoke up.

"You need help wooing _Velvet_?" Jaune finally managed, causing Cardin to lock up; Cardin thought back to what he said to Jaune last night and realized that he was rather vague about what he needed help with.

"No, I need help sorting out my feelings for her," he corrected. Jaune shook his head and pinched the bridge of his nose—he truly wondered when his life turned strange. Needing more information as to why Cardin needed to "sort out his feelings" for Velvet, he asked him to clarify.

"So why do you need help sorting out your feelings? Last I checked you hated all Faunus and constantly bullied her?" Jaune reminded him. Cardin flinched subtly at the memory of his tormenting of Velvet all the time: he had pulled her ears and a couple other nasty things that came to mind, but he pushed those thoughts aside.

"Because for the past month or so she's been the only thing on my mind besides class," Cardin admitted, looking at the Faunus girl from across the room. "Every time I close my eyes I see her. I've had dreams about her. Just looking at her makes my heart . . . like, ache." His tone was low, despondent, and this caught Jaune's attention.

"Sounds like you're in love, dude," Jaune stated bluntly. Cardin, startled, looked to him as if he were speaking another language.

"Why would I be in love with her?" Cardin whispered hoarsely in disbelief. Jaune, in return, rolled his eyes—he'd finally found someone more oblivious to love than he was.

"Heck if I know. Did she do anything to endear herself to you?" he asked. Cardin thought back to the dust explosion and how Velvet pushed him out of the way of the blast. She'd saved his life, despite not having to.

"Just, just one. She saved me from that dust explosion that occurred a few weeks ago," Cardin explained. Jaune nodded and sighed.

"Yeah, that might do it. I mean, I'm not sure how you can approach her, considering the stuff you've done," Jaune chuckled humorlessly as he tried thinking of any scenario that would lead to a somewhat favorable outcome. Cardin slammed his head onto the table and let out a long defeated sigh.

"I know I'm probably better off just not telling her," Cardin finally muttered, disheartened.

"Eh, I wouldn't recommend it. You don't have to start off by going up to her and saying something like, 'Hey Velvet, ever since you saved my life I've had the hots for you so let's like go out,' but you can start small by becoming her friend. Show her you've changed and then maybe try to take a step from there," Jaune advised. Cardin lifted his head from the table and studied Jaune for a moment. For a moron who didn't figure out a girl liked him, he's rather adept at this, Cardin thought.

"Yeah I, I think I can manage that. Thanks Jauney boy," Cardin smiled genuinely as he smacked Jaune on his back, sending the boy jolting forward. "Oh, sorry about that, but thanks for the advice."

"Um, yeah . . . no problem . . . anytime," Jaune grumbled quietly, still in disbelief that he managed to help Cardin. Looking at his scroll he noticed that they only had thirty minutes left at lunch. "Well, this is gonna be interesting to explain to Pyrrha and the others." He got up from the table and made his way to were his team and team RWBY were eating.

When the lunch bell rang he was still in the middle of explaining what had happened at the table with Cardin, much to his team's and Team RWBY's confusion.

"So let me get this straight. Cardin? Ear-pulling, faunus-hating _Cardin_ is in love with Velvet?" Blake confirmed as she stared disbelievingly at Jaune.

"Yep. Well, that's what I could gather from what he told me, and from the looks of it, he's got it bad," Jaune shrugged as he placed a tray onto the conveyer belt that lead to the dishwashing area.

"I think it's sweet," Ruby mused in her usual cheery voice, causing the rest of the group to frown at her. "What? It is," Ruby said, puffing her cheeks up defiantly.

"Ruby, how on Remnant is this sweet?" Weiss asked her girlfriend.

"Well, he's such a jerk, and she's so sweet, and if Jaune is right then he'll at least try to change to win her affection," Ruby described. An image of Cardin trying his best to win over Velvet's heart appeared in her head. It was a nice image.

"Right . . . anyway, this is probably doomed to fail," Yang deadpanned as she rolled her eyes at her younger sister's antics. "I mean, if Velvet doesn't yell at him then Coco and the rest of her team will for her." Ruby gave her sister a challenging look.

"I bet you two hundred lien that they won't fail," Ruby dared, knowing her sister couldn't pass up a challenge.

"Fine, you're on. I hope you pony up when I win." Yang extended her hand out and Ruby took it and the two shook to seal the deal. Blake rolled her eyes while Weiss simply muttered under her breath about wondering why she was dating Ruby.

Inside Professor Ooblecks' class, Cardin was observing Velvet, trying to figure out how he was going to ever find a way to get her to like him. After all, why would she? Considering all he'd done to her, this was going to be a hard nut to crack.

**To be Continued.**


	3. A Confession of Duress

A few days had passed since Cardin's talk with Jaune about his feelings for Velvet, and not one bit of progress was made. Well, that wasn't completely true; he did manage to get his team to stop tormenting the rabbit Faunus. That was an awkward conversation when they asked him why.

"Stop? Why the hell should we? You going soft, dude?" Russel challenged in response to Cardin's order to stop bullying Velvet.

"Yes, I said stop, and no, I'm not going soft. I have my reasons," Cardin explained, hoping that his team wouldn't press the issue more and would simply fall in line, but much like anything in the last month or so it would not be that simple.

"And what reasons would those be?" Dove asked a rare show of defiance from someone who usually followed orders. Cardin turned around and looked at his team; they all had defiant looks. He needed to regain control of this situation, fast.

"What does it matter to you three?" Cardin huffed exasperatedly, hoping to diffuse the problem now.

"Cause this isn't like you, dude. Since when have you cared about a freak like her?" Russel spat. Cardin felt a sympathetic ache in his chest when he heard Velvet being called a freak—it also became apparent on his face because his team noticed the change in his expression from stern to slight duress.

"Seriously dude, what's wrong with you?" Russel asked with genuine concern for his leader’s wellbeing. Cardin shook his head and spoke up once again.

"I'm fine. Just follow my orders," Cardin finished as he turned away, each of them giving him curious looks as he left to go to his next class. That was a few days ago and so far his team had followed orders not to tease, harass, or otherwise mess with Velvet in any manner. That, or they did continue to bully her and were just really good at hiding it from Cardin.

That was one obstacle down, hopefully. Now he had to find a way to get close to her without seeming . . . off. He knew he couldn't just walk up to team CFVY's table at lunch and try to shoot the breeze with her, that would be a one-way ticket to getting his face pummeled by Coco. Luckily for him, a chance to interact with Velvet came from an unlikely source: Professor Oobleck’s class.

Cardin didn't normally pay attention in the green haired man’s class, often only managing to catch vague ideas of what he said through his fast caffeine laden lectures about history. Now he definitely couldn't pay attention in the class, with all of his attention going to observing what Velvet was doing, and currently she was asleep in class—a bit unusual for her. His absentminded staring at Velvet was interrupted when he heard Professor Oobleck call his name.

"Mister Winchester, could you tell me the name of the general who lead the defensive during the attack on Fort Stall?" Professor Oobleck asked unamusingly, testing Cardin to see if he was paying attention.

"Um . . . First General Mavis Dunbar, sir," Cardin hesitated, digging deep in his memory for those pieces of info, Thank the gods for Jaune teaching him that one. Professor Oobleck, an unimpressed eyebrow raised, mulled over what Cardin said for a moment before speaking.

"Correct, Mister Winchester, but do try to pay attention, lest you end up in detention for the thousandth time," the professor sighed as he continued his coffee-fueled lecture. But try as he might, Cardin couldn't pay attention, and much like every other time he was in the professor's class, he was given detention. Him along with Velvet, due to her sleeping in class.

When the bell finally rang, signifying the end of the day for classes, all the students left with the exception of Cardin and Velvet.

"Now, you two are to write a two hundred and ninety word essay on the battle of Fort Stall," Professor Oobleck began before a beep suddenly sounded from his scroll. Taking a moment to glace at the message he received, he spoke up again. "It appears I have some business to attend to so I will leave you two alone, but remember, I want those essays on my desk by the end of this detention hour, understand?" Oobleck called as he hurried from the classroom, leaving Cardin and Velvet to finish the essay.

It took a lot of thinking, but Cardin managed to finish the essay in a relatively short amount of time. Velvet wasn't so lucky, her constant dozing off making writing near impossible for her.

"I could finish that for you," Cardin offered tentatively. She gave him a wry look, as if trying to figure out if this was a trick. "Trust me, I'm not going to ruin it. I give you my word," Cardin assured her, giving her a genuine smile. That seemed to convince her, as she slid the half-finished paper over to Cardin. Velvet had made it about one hundred words in, meaning she had a ways to go. Easy, Cardin thought. After looking it over a few more times to try to gauge Velvet’s writing style, he quickly completed the essay. Placing the finished papers on Professor Oobleck’s desk, the two made their way out of his class.

"I can bring you to your dorm if you're feeling too tired to wheel yourself there," Cardin offered again. The girl thought about the proposition for a moment before speaking up.

"Sure, just don't do anything," she said in her usual soft voice.

"I give my word," Cardin said as he wheeled Velvet towards her dorm room. It was a nice experience. His mind then thought of a question he'd been thinking since class started. "Um, if you don't mind me asking, why were you sleeping in class?" Cardin asked, curious as to why the normally diligent student was dozing off in class.

"The medication they gave me to help with my legs makes me drowsy," she admitted, yawning. "I'm so glad I'll be able to get off of them in a few days. Then I can walk again.” Cardin smiled at that. No more wheelchair-bound, frail Velvet. The idea made his heart soar a little. When they finally reached team CFVY's dorm, he knocked on the door twice and was greeted by Coco, who gave him the usual death glare.

"Velvet, glad to see you managed to make it back," Coco said sweetly as she smiled to her teammate. She took another glance at Cardin.

"I, um, brought her here cause she was having trouble staying awake long enough to wheel herself," Cardin assured her, explaining that he had done nothing wrong. Coco gave him another dirty look before she took Velvet inside the door. She turned and glared at him, pointed two fingers to her eyes then to his, and slammed the door in his face.

That night he had another dream about her, but this one was different than the last couple of ones he'd had about the rabbit girl. While most of the earlier ones were fairly innocent, with the two on dates or some other innocent romantic scene, this one was more erotic in nature, with Velvet in something that Cardin would never imagine her wearing in a million years. Suffice to say, when he woke up from the wet dream, his entire body was covered in sweat, and one other part was covered in . . . something less pleasant.

"What the hell is wrong with me?" Cardin growled in frustration at the ceiling as he got up to replace the sheet with a new one. It was one thing to just think about Velvet, but now he was doing _this_. He tried to get back to sleep, but unfortunately with minimal success. The dream eventually returned after he finally did, though luckily he didn't wake up from it this time. They were nice dreams, to say the least.

A few days passed and it finally came when Velvet could walk again. Cardin was happy that she was able to walk like she used to, and her mood seemed to change. Her demeanor when she was wheelchair-bound was slightly melancholy, but now she was as cheery as ever—he learned this while he was in lunch. Unfortunately for him, his team caught him staring at Velvet and confronted him on it.

"Hey, dude, you've been staring at her for the entire lunch period," Russel spoke, catching Cardin's attention.

"No—no, I wasn't," Cardin said defensively, sounding like a child who was caught with his hands in the cookie jar by their mother. His team collectively frowned. Dove piped up, concerned for their leader and his strange attitude as of late.

"Is something going on between you and that freak?" Dove asked, causing Cardin to show his dislike of Velvet being called a freak. "There's that face again. Every time we call her a freak, you make that face. Seriously, Cardin, is something wrong?" Dove continued to pester. Cardin should have figured that this was inevitable; he couldn't necessarily date Velvet without his team finding out, so it was time to bite the bullet and tell his team. But not here, not in front of all these witnesses. If he was going to pour his heart out, he would do it on his own terms.

"Yeah, something is wrong . . . but I can't say it here. Just trust me, I'll tell you guys when classes are over in the dorm," Cardin suggested, hoping that his team would abide by these terms.

"Ugh, fine. But you better tell us as soon as we make it back to the dorms," Russel growled impatiently. Cardin made an internal sigh of relief; he at least now had half the day to come up with a way to tell his team about his feelings for Velvet.

As the classes passed, Cardin slowly developed a plan for what would probably be the second biggest confession he would ever have to do. Stepping inside the dorm, he could see the rest of his team all waiting for him. Sighing, Cardin knew it was now or never—time to face the music.

"Alright, dude, what's up with you and Velvet?" Russel immediately asked, looking at his leader much like a concerned family member would.

"Nothing . . . as of now, but I hope something will be," Cardin conceded, hoping that his team could gleam what he meant by the words and he wouldn't have to spell it out for them.

"You're not saying what I think you're saying, are you?" Sky frowned, having gotten the gist of Cardin's words. Nodding, Cardin could see a variety of expressions displayed on his teammates, ranging from disgust from Russel, curiosity from Dove, and a look of what Cardin could only guess was admiration from Sky.

"How the hell could you be in love with that—that freak!?" Russel shouted angrily, pointing accusingly at Cardin. Cardin, in turn, became angry. How dare he question his own feelings? And how _dare_ he continue to call Velvet a freak?

"What's it to you, Russel? And stop calling her that!" Cardin replied hotly, rage seeping from every pore of his being. This seemed to strike a nerve in Russel, and he got up in Cardin's face.

"Stop calling her what? A freak? Cause that's what she is, a pure grade-A freak!" Russel spat. The next move surprised everyone—Cardin struck Russel in the face, his rage having crossed its limit. Russel fell to the floor with a pained grunt. He looked up and gave Cardin a nasty look, his hand against the afflicted area.

Looking at his fist, Cardin let out a cry of frustration and walked out the dorm room, slamming the door behind him. He needed to clear his head and calm down, lest he cause another incident with his team. Deciding he needed some fresh air, he went to the rooftop. He began to think of the events that had transpired as his eyes scanned the setting sun before him.

This whole situation was frustrating, and how he was unsure if his own team would look at him the same way again, especially after that outburst he had with Russel. Why did love have to be so fucking complicated?

"Um . . . sorry to intrude, but I think you could use some help." Cardin heard a chipper voice say behind him; it belonged to Ruby Rose, one of Jaune's friends.

"And how would you be able to help me?" Cardin replied tiredly as he went back to looking at the sunset and wallowing in his own self pity.

"Well, I may have been walking by your dorm room when I heard the argument you had with your team," she confessed. Cardin let out a long, frustrated sigh. If _she_ had heard it, then about three other teams probably heard it. By tomorrow it would be all over Beacon Net.

"I think it's sweet," Ruby said softly as she took a seat next to Cardin, her smile always present.

"And what in the world is sweet?"

"That you would be willing to go that far to fight for the one you love the most." She spoke her mind, wandering to the thought of the love in her life. "You know, there are people who don't approve of me and Weiss's relationship," she stated as she placed a hand comfortingly on Cardin's shoulder.  "But that didn't stop us, and it shouldn't stop you.”

"I'm not, but thanks anyway," Cardin replied, a small smile on his face. "But mind if I ask you something?"

"Sure, what's the question?”

"How did you confess to Weiss?" he asked after a moment. Ruby seemed to go into deep thought as she tried to recall how she confessed to her girlfriend.

"Well, it's hard to explain. Let me start from when I found out I was in love with her." Cardin nodded and listened carefully. "At the time, I found out she was still dating Neptune. It was a hard thing to see her in the arms of someone else."

"I think I cried for a straight week when it happened. I was in love with someone who would never love me back,"  she continued, "but I knew that if I was ever gonna move on from her I would have to tell her how I felt.

"I think it was after a really long mission on the airship back to Beacon that I told her. I had asked Blake and Yang to leave us alone." A slight blush appeared on her face at the memory. "I poured my heart out to her, telling her how much she meant to me and how I knew Neptune was her boyfriend, etcetera, but then something I didn't expect happened. She held my hand and told me she loved me as well," Ruby said, finishing the story about how Weiss had already told Neptune she was in love with Ruby and their dating was a ruse to get Ruby to confess. "I'm sure your situation is a bit different, but I recommend you just tell her you like her and you're willing to change for her. Don't let your team get you down and don't let anyone stop your love." She smiled warmly at him, and Cardin smiled back and pulled her into a tight hug.

"Thanks . . . for the advice. I may not be the right man for Velvet but I'll make sure I try to be," Cardin said, determination in his eyes. He knew now what he needed to do but the only question was: when and where?


	4. A Confession of Passion

Cardin was a man on a mission, well several missions to be exact but they were all pointed towards his main goal. He was going to ask Velvet Scarlatina out on a date if it was the last thing he was going to do, but first he had to deal with his teammates; how he had no idea.

The time it took Cardin to make it back to the dorm room he had thought of a few ideas as to how he would patch up the rift he made with his team after his outburst.  First he would have to apologize to Russel for decking him in the face. Next he would have to somehow get across to his team that he has a thing for Velvet and get them to accept that. Reaching team CRDL's dorm room he knocked a few times and waited for the door to open, he technically could just enter since it was his dorm too, but he felt it would be better to knock instead of just barging in.

He was happy when the person who opened the door wasn't Russel or Sky, but rather Dove who he hoped would act like his namesake and act like a mediator in this situation. Dove gave Cardin a sympathetic look glanced back behind him and let out a small sigh of frustration.

"Cardin's back." Dove announced to the other two occupants of the dorm as he let Cardin into the dorm. Stepping inside Carding was given a dirty look by Russel and one of indifference from Sky. He could see that Russel had an icepack on his face and was using it to nurse the black eye that Cardin had given him.

"So...how are you guys doing?" Cardin asked trying to clear the air, but judging by the looks they were giving him, "So I may have over reacted to a few things, blows were exchanged-" Cardin started but was cut off by Russel.

"More like a blow." He said angrily Cardin cleared his throat to get the attention back to him.

"Any way, I'm here to do two things. First Russel I'm sorry I punched you in the face." Cardin said trying his best to sound apologetic despite him thinking that Russel deserved the punch to the face. Russel simply rolled his eyes and went back to nursing the black eye that will probably be the closest thing Cardin get's to an accepted apology as he'll get for a while, "Second, I have to tell you guys this, my feelings for Velvet aren't going to change no matter what you say or do." Cardin finished he waited a moment to see what his team would do or say, the moments passed and then Dove spoke up.

"I can't speak for Sky or Russel but I'm good with whatever you do."  Dove said giving Cardin thumbs up Cardin smiled and looked at the rest of his team, Sky shrugged his shoulders and Russel didn't say or do anything to indicate his disapproval or approval. Well now that that was settled Cardin now had to think of a way to ask Velvet out, how he had no idea.

Wednesdays were always liked by Velvet the middle of the school week always managed to put her mind at ease knowing in a few days she would have two days of uninterrupted free time. For the most part her week and really the last couple of weeks have been fairly good for her; she hadn't been tormented by Cardin and his goons for the last few weeks, she could finally walk after being caught in that dust explosion and best of all she was doing oh so well in her classes (the detention she received non-withstanding.)

Picking up all the things she needed for class today she and the rest of her team headed out ready to meet the day.  Her first couple of classes were uneventful, a lecture from Professor Port a sparring session (which she won!) from Professor Goodwitch and a few other classes not worth much note. It wasn't until her last class of the day Professor Ooblecks that she was given a note. She never really received many notes during her time at Beacon or really at any school she was in.  She's not sure how it ended up on her desk she didn't get a chance to see who delivered it all she knew was while she was checking her backpack when class was dismissed it appeared on her desk. Normally she would throw something like this away but something on the face of the note caught her attention 'From the one who wishes to be near you' was written on it. Deciding to stuff it into her backpack she would show it to her team when they got back to their dorm.

Reaching team CFVY's dorm room Velvet could see that her team were already mulling about doing various things. Coco was reading a magazine not paying much attention to anything, Yatsuhashi was sharpening his sword and Fox was simply sleeping after a long day of class.

"So how was your day Velvet?" Coco asked not taking her eye from her magazine as she turned a page Velvet shrugged her shoulders.

"Oh it was okay; I got a note from someone." She said as she lay down on her bed this seem to catch Coco's attention because she lowered her magazine and gave Velvet an inquisitive look.  

"A not huh, who's it from?" Coco asked giving her full attention to the rabbit faunus, Velvet hated when she did this.

"I don't know it just says 'From the one who wishes to be near you' I'm not sure who that could be." Velvet said Coco thought for a few moments and spoke.

"Did you read it yet?" Coco asked Velvet shook her head and Coco let out a small snorting laugh.

"You received a note like that and didn't read it!?" Coco laughed out causing Fox to wake up and Yatsuhashi turned his attention from his blade to his team's leader. Velvet sighed as she unfolded the note and looked at its contents. It read as such.

**_Dear Velvet._ **

**_I am someone who has seen you from afar and for a long time I never considered you much of an entity. Now I look at you and my heart and mind are stuck upon you. If you would meet me on the west roof of the academy at 11:00 I would be a happy person._ **

**_From The one who wishes to be near you._ **

Velvet looked at the letter and blushed slightly; this seemed to catch Coco's attention because in a quick moment she snatched the note from Velvet's hand and began reading it. She let out a small aww as she finished the letter.

"Wow whoever this is must have it bad for you Velvet, so you going to meet him or her?" Coco asked lowering her sunglasses to stare directly at Velvet; this caused the faunus girl to stutter as she tried to answer.

"I-I'm not sure I mean...I could but I'm not sure if it's a joke or not." Velvet stammered out trying to avoid her leaders gaze, this made the older girl laugh.

"Don't worry we'll tail you and if it looks fishy we'll show whoever this is why it's not a good idea to mess with Team CFVY."  Coco said giving Velvet some reassurance, she glanced at the clock on the wall it read 8:44 she had some time before she had to confront this person whoever they were.

The few hours Velvet had to wait passed fairly quickly a little too quickly for her taste, all while the time passed she debated back and forth in her mind as to whether or not to go to the meeting with this mysteries person. On one hand she would have her team with her in case it was some kind of cruel joke, but on the other hand if this was she would still be made fun of by some person who decided o fake a love letter to her. In the end she decided to take her chances and at 10:40 she along with her team snuck out of their dorm carful of the night monitors and made their way to the west roof of Beacon. Coco, Fox and Yatsuhashi were hiding behind the door out of sight, a feat not easily achieved especially for the large and imposing Yatsuhashi.

Opening the door Velvet could see only one person standing on the roof. The moonlight was slightly illuminating them she could see a few features they had red hair and broad shoulders but apart from that she couldn't make out much their face was turned from her.

"Um are you the person who sent me the note?" Velvet asked the unknown person who turned around to reveal the one person she dreaded it being: Cardin Winchester.

"I can't believe you came." Cardin said smiling as he walked up to Velvet causing her to reel slightly at the movement.

"Is this some kind of joke?!" Velvet yelled anger on her face this made Cardin back off slightly his smile now gone replaced by a worried frown, "You write a love letter to me to get me up here, are the rest of your goons here!?" She yelled walking up to Cardin poking him accusingly in the chest her right hand glowing slightly.

"No, no I came alone and this isn't a trick." Cardin said defensively trying his best to not get Velvet angrier and failing as it seems.

"Really? The person who tormented me for months on end now wants to confess his love for me!" Velvet said her anger reaching a near boiling point, Cardin having never seen her angry was now in slight fear for his life.

"It's the truth." Cardin said trying to calm the enraged faunus as best he could.

"And why should I believe you!?" Velvet asked as she raised her glowing hand ready to use a spell on Cardin in her anger. Cardin sighed and spoke.

"Honestly I can't think of why you should." Cardin spoke plainly this made Velvet hesitate for a second.

"What?" Velvet asked her magic faltering for a few seconds.

"I don't have a reason why you should believe me. I know how this looks to you a guy who bullied you since you got here now wants to date you." Cardin started as he looked Velvet in the eyes his face was in a frown, "To tell you the truth I'm not sure if I deserve someone as pure as you, but trust me when I say this I want to try to be the man worthy of your affection." He said solemnly Velvet lowered her arm and deactivated her magic and looked at Cardin.

"When?" She asked this caught Cardin off guard slightly.

"When what?" he asked back.

"When did you...fall for me?" She asked Cardin thought for a moment trying to figure out the exact moment.

"I guess it was a few days after I woke up from the dust explosion." He started as he thought back to that time how his mind was filled to the brim with nothing but the image of her in that bed so frail and weak, "You were all that was on my mind all that I could think about. It wasn't until I talked to Jaune that I realized what was even wrong with me." Cardin said as he walked up to Velvet she didn't seem to react like she did the first time.

"Velvet, you've been the only thing I could focus on for the past month besides school work. I see you in my dreams when I daydream, Velvet I know I'm not the best man and gods knows you can do better than me, but I was hoping you'd like to go out with me?" Cardin said hope in his eyes Velvet looked down and then back at Cardin a small smile on her face.

"Fine, I'll go out with you." Velvet said it took Cardin a moment to comprehend what the faunus girl had said when he fully did he scooped up Velvet into one of the largest hugs she'd ever received second only to Yatsuhashi bear hugs. He spun her around letting out a cry of joy.

"Thank you Velvet I promise you won't regret this." Cardin said as he put Velvet to her feet, "If you want we could go out this Saturday." Cardin said a hopeful smile on his face.

"I'd like that." Velvet replied glancing back at her teammates who were waiting eagerly for her return.

"I'll...see you tomorrow." Velvet said as she departed from Cardin giving him a smile before she went to join up with her team.

"I can't believe he asked you out." Coco said in slight disbelief at what happened on the roof if someone had told her that the most devout faunus haters in the school would have asked out one she would have laughed them off of the face of Remnant, but here she was talking about that very event.

"What's more I'm surprised you accepted." Yatsuhashi said.

"Yeah, I am too, but I can at least give him a chance I guess." Velvet said as the team made their way back to their dorm. When Velvet readied for bed it fully hit her. She had agreed to a date on Saturday with Cardin Winchester, how and why she did not know but she knew she couldn't stand him up considering the spectacle that happened that night. Letting out a sigh Velvet wondered how weirder the next couple of days could get.


	5. A First Date

Cardin was ecstatic no far beyond that he was on cloud nine and all because of one person, a rabbit Faunus named Velvet. Cardin was still in a slight disbelief had this been several months ago e would have laughed at the notion that he would be going on a date with her, but now it was all he could think about that and where he was going to take her.

By some margin of luck he managed to get reservations for a rather upscale restaurant in Vales downtown area. He could still remember the small tinge of excitement that Velvet showed when he told her where they were going for their first and hopefully not their last date.

One other thing that came out of this was apparently almost all of Beacon Academy finding out about the date, which when he thinks about it considering his dates team leader was a massive gossip should have been expected.  One thing he did expect was the various reactions people had to hearing about this. Some were outright surprised by it, others thought it was some joke being spread around, some didn't care much for the affairs of two people and then there were the select few people who wished Cardin luck on his first date with Velvet.

Soon the days dwindled until Saturday night finally came around, and Cardin was freaking out big time. He was nearly pulling his hair out fretting over whether or not Velvet would find his outfit attractive and a number of other things that his friend where saying were dumb or didn't matter.

"Dude this is Velvet we're talking about I don't think she'll care much how you tux looks, no offense Dove." Sky said as he read a magazine not paying much attention to what his friends were doing, in the corner where a mirror stood Cardin was getting helped with his date attire by Dove; who much to his friends surprise knew quite a lot about men's fashion something the three of them would not attribute to the normally silent guy.

"None taken and Sky's right, Velvet doesn't strike me as the kind girl who would care much what her date is wearing. Still I'm going to try to make you look as dashing as I can." Dove said as he put the finishing touches on Cardin's tuxedo, "And done alright you should knock Velvet off her feet with this look." Dove said Cardin looked at himself in the mirror the outfit Dove had picked out for him was a modern cut tuxedo with a red carnation and a black bowtie, he looked by all standard definitions a sharply dressed man.

"Wow, thanks Dove I'm sure Velvet will love this." Cardin said as he grabbed his scroll and headed out of his dorm room to meet Velvet who would probably be finishing up her preparations for the date.  Cardin wondered what outfit Velvet would wear to the date. Would it be something stylish, something conservative, something revealing? Each mental image was different and interested Cardin in different ways.

Meanwhile Velvet was having a considerably easier time with her preparations for the date; while she was just as nervous as Cardin she had Coco to reassure her.  The two had spent the past couple days picking out a dress that would be sure to in Coco's words, "Send Cardin's jaw to the floor." The dress they picked out was a green tea length cocktail dress. She looked herself over in the mirror and smiled this would definitely leave Cardin speechless. Her thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the dorm room door, which was most likely Cardin. Rushing to grab her things Velvet made it to the door before any of her teammates could and opened it. The two stared at each other for a minute getting a good look at what the other was wearing and both near speechless at how the other looked, Velvet was the first to regain her composure and spoke up.

"You look really handsome Cardin." Velvet said a slight blush on her face one that she tried her best to hide.

"Tha-thanks, you look really beautiful Velvet." Cardin said this made Velvet's blush illuminate even further, Velvet then let out a squeak as she was pushed out by Coco.

"Well have fun you two; try to be back by twelve okay." Coco said as she rushed the two out the door and closed it behind them.  The two let out a small embarrassed laugh and walked to where they would need to catch a bus to head to downtown Vale.  While riding to downtown Velvet decided to speak up.

"You know this is my first date." She said sheepishly Cardin gave her a reassuring smile and replied.

"This is only my second date in life; I'm surprised someone like you doesn't get asked out."Cardin said Velvet smiled at the complement.

"I do...I just never really accepted any of them." Velvet said as she looked out the window to the passing street lights and cars.

"Well I'm glad you did accept mine." Cardin replied with a smile the two continued to make idle small talk until they reached the drop off point for the bus. From there they walked a while until they made it to the restaurant that Cardin had reservations for, it was fairly fancy and looked way above whatever she could possibly afford to go to. They were seated and given a menu and then left to their own devices until their server returned.

"You know I'm still surprised that you agreed to a date with me." Cardin said looking at Velvet for what was probably the thousandth time during the date.

"I know you keep saying that." Velvet said rolling her eyes at her dates remark Cardin rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment this made Velvet giggle slightly; she'd never seen him this bashful it's a side of Cardin she liked, "It's kind of strange." Velvet says as she looks at the night sky she liked the night sky always calm always serene.

"What's strange?" Cardin asked Velvet smiled again.

"You know when I first saw you I thought you were quite handsome." Velvet said winking at Cardin causing him to blush as brightly as a searchlight.

"You really thought I was handsome?" Cardin asked Velvet nodded and smiled, "So I'm guessing the bullying is what changed your mind?" Cardin asked Velvet nodded again and Cardin let out a disappointed internal sigh, how he could have hurt a woman as soft as Velvet is beyond him.

"I'm sorry for all the crap I've put you throgh over the last few months." Cardin said apologetically, "I'm sorry for all the times I've pulled your ears and the other things I've done to you." Cardin finished

"I accept your apology, oh looks like our servers back." Velvet said as the server returned to take their orders.  After a while and more small talk the two's food arrived and they ate in relative silence, after the meal Cardin suggested they take a stroll around Vale for a bit and enjoy some of the night life. There were many different sights in Vale at night from various night clubs to late night cinemas.

"I think I've only been around Vale at this time of night once with Coco." Velvet said as she looked at the neon lights of various shops and other sights that littered the downtown area. The two continued to take in the many sights and sounds until Cardin was jolted onto the ground from bumping into a person.

"Uh, sorry I didn't mean to do that." Cardin said as he got up apologizing when he fully righted himself on his feet he got a good look at the person who he bumped into it was a red headed girl who seemed to have a wide smile.

"Um...h-" Cardin started but was cut off by the girls' loud greeting.

"Salutations, I apologize for that. My name's Penny, yours?" Penny said a wide smile on her face Cardin and Velvet took a glance at each other then back to Penny before one final glance back at each other.

"Um...I'm Velvet, this is Cardin." Velvet said a bit confused at the girl's strange behavior Penny for her part seemed to light up at the mention of Velvets name.

"Oh you're one of Ruby's friends right?" Penny said mentioning their mutual friend she then pointed to Cardin, "Oh and Ruby told me about you, and she said you we're a 'big meanie'." Penny said commenting on Cardin.

"Might I ask what you two are doing?" Penny asked the smile still on her face the two were hesitant to answer but Cardin decided to speak up.

"Um...we're on a date." Cardin said this seemed to piqué Penny's interest because the girl moved closer to the two her grin growing wider, "Um Penny you know dates are usually just two people...right?" Cardin asked backing away slightly from the strange girl. Penny seemed to catch on slightly and decreased her distance from the couple.

"Really? Interesting well I will leave you two, please enjoy the rest of your day." Penny said as she left the two to continue their date. Cardin and Velvet decided that they would never speak of meeting this strange girl again and continue their date.

Eventually Cardin and Velvet decided to call it a night and head back to Beacon Academy taking a bus back to Beacon the two decided to stay in silence and watch the passing street lights and cars cascade across the blackness that was night, it was a rather beautiful sight. When they reached Beacon Cardin offered to walk Velvet back to her dorm like a gentleman, Velvet accepted and so the two walked to team CFVY's dorm room in silence simply enjoying the others company.

"So did you enjoy our time out?" Cardin asked as they reached the outside of team CFVY's dorm a hopeful smile was on his face as he eagerly awaited his date's response.

"I did, it was fun seeing this side of you." Velvet said as she tried to find a way to easily do what she wanted to do next. She urged Cardin to lean forward and without warning placed her lips on his; as quickly as she kissed him Velvet parted from his lips and smiled, "I hope we can go out again Cardin." Velvet said as she left Cardin outside to go back into her dorm, Cardin simply stood their slightly stunned at Velvets actions.

The walk back to team CRDL's dorm Cardin played the kiss over and over in his head, all while a big goofy grin was on his face. When he reached his team's dorm they were all waiting to get an idea of how his date went.

"So how'd it go?" Russel asked Cardin as the slightly older boy sat down on his bed.

"It went well; she said she wants to go out again." Cardin said contently if he wasn't in love before he was sure in love now, he was in love with Velvet Scarlatina and he didn't care who knew or what they thought of it.

**To be continued.**


	6. A First Time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hate writing smut, a lot so if this was a lackluster chapter blame that since I only did this as a plot point.

So as things often go for young couples, one date turned to two, and that two turned to eight, and that eight turned to sixteen and so forth. Suffice to say, Cardin and Velvet were near inseparable. This also meant that Yang owed Ruby two hundred Lien.

It was a few days after Cardin and Velvet’s sixteenth date that Velvet and Coco were at a day spa, enjoying what they called “girl time”, which mostly involved shopping, talking about various things, and trips to the best spa in all of Vale. It was also a good time since they finally had a few days off from classes and the like, so why not spend it like this? It was while they were in the mud baths that Coco decided to ask Velvet about her boyfriend.

“So how goes the dating life? You and bird boy enjoying each other’s time?” Coco asked as she felt the mud work its magic on her body. Velvet thought for a few seconds.

“Well, it’s been good. Cardin is such a gentleman and he’s such a . . . wonderful kisser,” she admitted, feeling her face heat up at the memory of their first make-out session. Just the idea sent pleasant shivers down her spine.

“Well that’s good. So when do you two think you’re gonna go ‘further?’” Coco asked, wiggling her eyebrows for emphasis. Velvet blushed harder at the implication.

“I—well, I mean—I thought about it, but,” Velvet started, but couldn’t find the words to finish the sentence. Coco laughed at her friend’s discomfort.

“Just teasing you, Velvet. I guess you and Cardin can wait until you tie the knot,” Coco said as she sank further into the mud, but Velvet was trying hard to say what she wanted to.

“It’s not that, it’s just I’m not sure if we’re ready as a couple,” Velvet voiced as the thought of having sex with Cardin flashed through her mind, causing her to turn as read as a tomato. Coco noticed this and let out another laugh.

“So you’re worried about rushing things, eh? I can see that.” Coco started thinking of the many relationships she’d seen that had ended abruptly due to rushing. “Have you talked to Cardin about this?” Velvet nodded.

“He said he didn’t want me to do anything I wasn’t comfortable with,” Velvet said.

“Well, do you want to?” Coco asked. Velvet though for what felt like an eternity; she weighed the pros and cons of what she might say. Did she really want to have sex with Cardin this early on into their relationship? They’ve only been dating for a few months. Finally, collecting her thoughts, she spoke.

“I do. I’d like to, but . . . it’s kind of embarrassing,” Velvet admitted, feeling her face heat up more and more as this conversation went on.

“Well, then talk to Cardin about it. When he knows you’re comfortable, things will fall into place,” Coco said, reassuring her teammate. Velvet thought for a moment and decided that this was probably the best course of action. The only question was when and where would she ask him. An idea popped into her head.

“Coco, can I ask a favor of you?” Velvet asked, and Coco had a smile on her face.

“Sure, Vel. Anything you need.” All was left was to prepare, and how to do that, Velvet was unsure. Well, Coco could probably help with that as well.

A few hours passed since the conversation, and Velvet was now waiting in team CFVY’S dorm room. By Coco’s own badgering and convincing, she managed to get Fox and Yatsuhashi out of the dorm for the night and now she was waiting for Cardin to arrive. To say she was nervous would be an understatement; part of her was so excited at the prospect that she could hardly contain herself.

Glancing to her right, she saw the rather large box of condoms that Coco had given her; it had been extremely embarrassing explaining to Fox and Yatsuhashi what they were for, but it helped get them out of the dorm quicker, so that was a plus she guessed. Her thoughts were interrupted by a knocking on the door; quickly she scrambled to the door and opened it, a smile on her face as Cardin stepped inside.

“How’s it going, Vel?” Cardin asked as he placed a light kiss on Velvet’s forehead. She smiled as she closed the door behind them and locked it for good measure.

“I’m doing well, Cardin,” she responded as she sat down on her bed, patting the area next to her, inviting Cardin to take a seat. He sat down next to her, her hand in his, and Velvet could already feel heat resonate from her face; it was always awkward for these two to begin anything intimate; it usually took one of them overcoming their shyness to start it.

“So . . . how did you manage to get your whole team to not be here?” Cardin asked, taking note of the emptiness of the dorm room.

“I asked Coco for a favor,” Velvet replied quietly, slowly beginning to trace her finger tips up Cardin’s arm, stopping at his shoulder. She pulled him close and placed her lips gently on his. The two parted for a second, smiles on their faces before they began to kiss more and more. With each kiss, Velvet was pushing Cardin further onto his back until she was nearly straddling him. They parted to catch their breaths and Cardin noticed how compromising the position they were in was. He tried to right himself but Velvet stopped him; she cut him off before he could speak.

“Cardin, I want to . . . be with you,” Velvet said, trying to find a way to phrase what she wanted to do with him.

“But we are together, Vel,” he said, confused.

“I know, but I want to be with you in a more . . . intimate way.” She held her breath as he took a few moments to catch on to what she meant. He started blushing furiously at the idea; it’s not that he hadn’t fantasized about it, it’s just he wasn’t sure if it was too soon in their relationship to have sex or not.

“Vel, is this really what you want? I don’t want you to feel like you need to do something you wouldn’t be comfortable with,” he said, assuring a mistake wouldn’t be made that they’d both regret later. Regardless, she nodded and placed a kiss on his lips as a way of reassuring him.

“Cardin, I thought long and hard about this, and I want it.” Her mind was made up; there was no return, she thought—now or never. He seemed to accept this as he smiled and placed his hands on her hips.

“So, how do you want to do this?” he asked. “Should I take the lead or do you want to?” Velvet thought for a moment.

“Let’s improvise and see where this takes us,” she answered, and she reluctantly removed herself from Cardin’s lap and stepped off the bed. He was about to protest until he saw that she was removing the various articles of clothing that adorned her, one by one, until she was down to her white bra and panties. He stared and she liked it.

“Coco helped me pick them out. Do you like them?” she asked teasingly as her boyfriend continued to stare at her lingerie. When he said yes, she let out an internal cry of joy. “You know, since I already gave you a show, how about you return the favor?” Velvet tried to sound as seductive as she could, and it must have worked because he eagerly nodded and stood from the bed and began stripping. When he was down to only his boxers, she could see he was already erect.

She’d never seen many men’s “packages”, save for the few times she made the mistake of walking in on one of her two male teammates while they were stepping out of the shower, but other than that, and one of the dirty magazines that Coco kept, this was her first real time seeing one erect and it was all because of her.

Cardin returned to the bed, now both of them in their underwear and unsure of who should make the first move. Velvet decided to move first and she placed her hand on his chest; Cardin was a huntsman, so he had a decently toned body. She crept up over him until her lower body was right above his. She lowered herself onto him, and the only thing stopping their bodies from fully meeting was the collective fabric of their underwear. Out of instinct, he bucked his hips when brushed against each other, and Velvet let out a low moan as a small wave of pleasure ran through her core. He noticed this and repeated the action, and it elicited the same response.

“Cardin, keep that up,” she urged her boyfriend, and he continued to dry-hump her. With each thrust she could feel herself being brought closer to her edge. Was she really that sensitive?

After several minutes, she released a strained cry as she finally reached her limit, and she clutched Cardin’s frame tightly as she rode it out. When she was finished, her breaths were heavy and she was panting hard.

“C-Carding, that was . . . I’ve never felt so amazing in my life,” she breathed, coming down from the high of her release.

“Do you want to continue? We can stop if you want,” he asked, but she shook her head and reached over to where the box of condoms was.

“No, no I want to continue. Plus, it wouldn’t be fair if I were the only one having fun,” she said as she took the wrapper off the condom and began taking off his boxers for him, leaving him completely naked. She worked the latex onto his member and smiled, then undid the strap of her bra and tossing it aside before working out of her panties. She positioned her entrance over his member and did a silent count to three before lowering herself onto him.

She let out a sharp hiss of breath while Cardin bit back a groan. She waited for herself to adjust before rising up from him and sliding back down, a little faster. Pleasure began surging through their bodies as they continued the motion. Each movement worked him closer, and in his opinion this was definitely a far-sight better than any fantasy he’d ever had about Velvet. Each time the rabbit faunus bounced up and down was heaven to him.

            Finally, with a drawn-out groan, he came, and he gripped her hips tightly as each stream of his seed rushed into the condom. After a moment, he let go of her and let out a short breath. They were both sticky with sweat.

            “So . . .” Cardin began, breathing hard, “how was that . . . for a first time?” She, in return, hugged him tightly as she removed herself from him.

            “It was grand,” she breathed, kissing him on the lips. “Do you want to take a shower?” she asked, noticing the sweat that drenched their bodies. He nodded and, after a brief shower, the two returned to the bed. The rest of the night they spend cuddle together, enjoying the afterglow of their first time.

Cardin was the first to wake up the next morning; the sight he was greeted to with was a good one. Velvet was asleep and his arms were wrapped around her protectively. This was a sight he could get used to waking up to each and every morning. Snuggling up to Velvet, burying his face into her brown hair and letting out a content sigh, he spoke softly into her ears.

“I love you, Velvet Scarlatina. I hope we never leave each other for as long as we live,” he whispered as he hugged her closer to him. If he could, he would stay like this forever, just the two of them.

“I love you too, Cardin Winchester,” she replied sleepily, causing him to smile. IF this is what love felt like, then he never wanted to be without it.

 

**To be Continued**


	7. A Trip to the Beach

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So this is basically a little thing I worked on as a sort of extra chapter.

Cardin liked visiting the beach he liked everything about it, relaxing in the sun, the nice soft sand and most of all he loved seeing his wife Velvet in her swimsuit. That's not to say he hasn't seen Velvet in much more risqué outfits (his mind wandered to their honeymoon and what she wore for that.) But there was something absolutely tantalizing about her figure in a bathing suit, he especially loved her current figure in a bathing suit. Velvet was now about six months pregnant with their third child and she was showing; her belly was slightly extended showing where her soon to be born child was growing and a few other signs of her pregnancy such as her breast being slightly bigger so as to help produce mil and a couple of other things.

Still there was one person who didn't like they way Velvet looked while she was pregnant and that was much to Cardin's dismay Velvet herself.  It to her made her look too big and not in the right way. Cardin knows this because during her first pregnancy he saw Velvet looking at herself in the mirror of their apartment for a long time, she was only in her underwear and she had a sad look on her face

"Um Velvet is everything okay?" He inquired looking at his wife from behind Velvet shook her head no, "Is something wrong dear?" he asked concern lacing his voice, he had noticed for the last few weeks that Velvet was acting strange, more distant.

"You think I'm ugly right now don't you?" Velvet said bluntly catching Cardin completely off guard, if anything Cardin was more attracted to Velvet now than he'd ever been.

"Why would I think you're ugly?" Cardin asked trying to ascertain why his wife would think that. Turning around she gave Cardin a look that he'd hope he'd never see on Velvet's face again, she looked so dejected.

"Just look at me." She said as she began to point to various parts of her body.

"Velvet." He started as he walked up to her and placed his hand on her clearly pregnant stomach, "You are the most beautiful woman I know, I would never find the way you look ugly especially now."  He then drew her into a hug.

"Tha-thank you honey." Velvet said as she let herself become engulfed into the loving embrace of her husband. That was almost two years ago and from what he could tell she was still in this mindset he hoped that this trip to the beach would break her of this. Plus it was reunion time for them and their friends, they had graduated a year ago and it would be a fun experience to see each other, and in addition it would be the first time many of their friends would see the twins in person.

"And we're here." Cardin announced as they pulled up to the beach already he could see several of their friends playing in the water or participating in a game of beach volleyball. Looking back he could see Velvet had the same look she did when she asked him was she ugly during her first pregnancy, "Don't worry you look fine." Cardin said reassuring his wife who gave him a weak smile.

"Come on I'll get everything go tell everyone we're here." Cardin said as he got out of the car so he could fetch all their beach supplies along with some things they would need to take care of the twins while out. Letting out a sigh Velvet got out of the car clutching her twins in her hands, Cardin was right she thought she had nothing to be ashamed of she was still very much a beautiful twenty three year old woman. Proudly she stepped out and met the world in her new bathing suit; a nice purple one piece that in Cardin's words 'Made her look like the most stunning woman he'd ever seen.'  She walked up to the beach and greeted the first person she saw who happened to be none other than her old teammate and closest friend Coco Adel.

"Hey Coco." Velvet spoke catching the attention of the brown haired girl; turning around Coco had a large smile on her face.

"So you two finally made it, and you brought our little bundles of joy with you." Coco said as she looked at the twins Coco was the one who helped Velvet when she went into labor and so had a fairly special connection to baby Raven and Cornet, "Hey guys Vel and Cardin are here!" She shouted to the rest of the group who all turned their attention to Velvet, soon all her friends had come up to see her and the twins.

"Wow they're soooo cute!" Nora gushed as she looked at the twins, "almost like little sloths." She finished.

"Wow Velvet, pregnant again I guess I was right Cardin can't keep his hands off you." Yang said causing Velvet to blush that was embarrassing no matter how true it was.

"So where is that husband of yours anyway?" Coco asked just as these words left her lips Cardin returned carrying all the supplies they brought with them.

"Hey guys." Cardin said as he waived at the group. Setting up their supplies the two began on working to make sure that the twins wouldn't get sun burnt while they were out. The rest of the day was filled with the normal fun in the sun that a trip to the beach would offer, volley ball, sun bathing all the works. Cardin managed to catch up with Jaune and all of team CRDL and generally shoot the breeze with his old friends; Velvet did the same with her friends.

By the time the day was ending Velvet and Cardin were dead tired and the twins were already fast asleep. Driving home Cardin asked Velvet a question and he hoped he would get the answer he was looking for.

"So do you still dislike the way you look?" Cardin asked Velvet thought for a moment and answered.

"In a way...yes I still do." She said Cardin's mood dropped for a second then Velvet spoke up again, "But I also see that I'm still beautiful and so long as I like me I don't care." Cardin smiled again that was the Velvet he knew and loved. That night after putting the twins to sleep Cardin and Velvet were preparing for bed. Velvet was in her underwear much like she was the first time this came up and to Cardin she was looked as beautiful as the day he fell in love with her. Feeling a little adventurous he walked up to his wife and wrapped his arm around her pregnant belly.

"You know Vel the doctors said we could still have our intimate moments even while you're in this state of pregnancy." He said as he laid a trail of kisses down Velvet's neck causing her to giggle.

"Oh Cardin you're such a Charmer." Velvet said as she let her husband continued, that night they got to sleep a little later than usual.


End file.
